how to write an essay introduction ks3

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How good are your writing skills? Writing is an essential skill for both school subjects and everyday life. With the help of our  KS3 Writing (The Basics) Guide,  you will be able to enhance your writing skills, and learn how to write effective literature. This guide will complement your classroom learning, as well as aid you during exams. This guide is IDEAL for any student who wishes to score high marks in their writing.

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Writing forms an integral part of children’s learning. The ability to write effectively allows you to demonstrate a good understanding of the English language.

Writing is a great skill which can be altered to reflect different contexts, purposes and audiences. In Key Stage 3, students are required to write different literary texts, for different purposes. Thus, this requires a strong level of knowledge regarding vocabulary and grammar.

It is important that you understand how you will be assessed during your Key Stage 3 English exams. During the writing assessment, you will be assessed on the following.

Pupils will be taught how to:

• Write with fluency, ease and control.
• Strong, persuasive, narrative essays.
• Short stories, plays and poetry.
• Imaginative writing.
• Formal letters.
• Scripts and presenations.
• Plan and draft your ideas. Think about:
• Characters, narrative, themes, motives, style. context, audience and purpose.
• Carefully choosing grammar and understanding the importance of vocabulary.
• Structuring your writing format in a clear and concise manner.
• Understanding the importance of audience and how your writing can infuential.
• Be original and creative.
• Use the English Language in a way that is expressive, creative , informative, Imaginative or personal.

The above should be used as a guideline to determine what areas your child should focus on when preparing for any written assessment.

STRUCTURING YOUR WRITING

What makes a good introduction? How can we as the writer ensure that our readers stick around to the very end? These questions are exactly the reason why an introduction to a text is so important.

An introduction needs to make your reader want to read on. Belo, we have outlined some of the key things you should consider when writing an introduction:

1. Hook the reader!

• Introduce the text and set out what your text is going to be about.
• If it is a story, you will want to introduce the main character/s, the setting and tone of the narrative.
• If it’s a persuasive text, engage your reader by asking rhetorical questions.
• Understand the topic of the text, who your audience is, and what you want to achieve.

2. Keep the reader wanting more!

The middle of your text is where ‘the bulk’ of your writing will take place.

This is where everything is going to happen, and will include all of the main points you wish to make.

3. Maintain reader’s interest!

• Your writing needs to use powerful literary techniques in order to engage the reader and make them want to read on.
• Consider all of the key points you wish to make and explore how they are relevant/important to the overall text.
• You need to include detailed descriptions.
• Think about TiPToP (time, place, topic, person)

4. Focus on your main points/topic!

• If you are writing a story, you need to include obstacles and complications.
• If you are writing a letter, you will need to include the main points you wish to cover. It is best to include a few main points and detail them, as opposed to including lots of points with little detail.
• Remember to use paragraphs for each new point

5. Make the reader think!

• A good middle will make the reader want to finish the text.
• If it is a story, you need to start resolving the complications in order to end the narrative.
• If it’s a letter, what do you want your reader to do/think after reading your text?

Every piece of writing needs a good ending. Of course, your ending will depend on what type of text you are writing. However, in generic sense, you need to sum up everything you have written.

6. Sum up your points/ideas!

• This is where the climax/main points of your text will be resolved.
• This is going to be the last thing your readers are going to remember. Therefore, you want to make a lasting impression on them.

7. Make a last impression!

• If you are writing a letter, this will use a very formal way of ending. If it’s a letter of complaint, your ending sentence should be along the lines of hoping to have an issue resolved. Generally, letters will also end as follows:

• If you are writing to persuade or argue, then you will want your readers to agree with everything you have said.
• If you are writing a story, your ending will need to sum up everything that has happened, and ties up the overall narrative.
• Your readers should be left feeling satisfied. They should have some idea of what you hoped to achieve, your reasons for it, any implications and a resolution.

WRITING PRACTICE QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS

Circle all of the answers that you should apply to your notes.

Circle the correct spelling of the word in the sentences below.

a) The beautiful bride walked down the isle / aisle with her father.

b) What are you going to where / wear / were to the party tonight?

c) Simon passed / past me the plate of potatoes.

d) Their / They’re / There going to be in really big trouble when they get home.

e) The dog ate two / to / too much food and now he is being sick.

For the following sentences, tick whether each sentence is written using formal or informal language.

What are the four categories which you should remember when working out when to place a new paragraph in your writing?

1. _________________________

2. _________________________

3. _________________________

4. _________________________

You should have circled:

• Abbreviations

• Bullet points

• Key words

• Colour-code

• Shorthand

• Simple sentences

a) The beautiful bride walked down the aisle with her father.

b) What are you going to wear to the party tonight?

c) Simon passed me the plate of potatoes.

d) They’re going to be in really big trouble when they get home.

e) The dog ate too much food and now he is being sick.

BECOME THE BEST WRITER YOU CAN BE

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• Revision guide for Writing (The basics)  – this revision guide focuses specifically on writing skills, and how to write effective literature.
• Focus on the new National Curriculum  – outline the new national curriculum to ensure your child is prepared for the new national curriculum.
• A glossary –  of all the key terms that your child will need to learn in order to do well in any English assessment.
• Detailed information  – this guide is packed full of information, top tips, and sample questions to help your child better their understanding of the English language, and how to improve their writing ability.
• Get creative  – our guide is packed full of opportunities for your child to get their creative minds working. Taking notes, making mind-maps and coming up with stories are just a few ways of how we get your child thinking and writing creative pieces of literature.
• Use alongside our other Key Stage 3 guides  – this guide can be used on its own, or part of our Key Stage 3 collection. Make sure you check out our range of English guides to help prepare.

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• How to write an essay introduction | 4 steps & examples

How to Write an Essay Introduction | 4 Steps & Examples

Published on February 4, 2019 by Shona McCombes . Revised on July 23, 2023.

A good introduction paragraph is an essential part of any academic essay . It sets up your argument and tells the reader what to expect.

The main goals of an introduction are to:

• Catch your reader’s attention.
• Give background on your topic.
• Present your thesis statement —the central point of your essay.

This introduction example is taken from our interactive essay example on the history of Braille.

The invention of Braille was a major turning point in the history of disability. The writing system of raised dots used by visually impaired people was developed by Louis Braille in nineteenth-century France. In a society that did not value disabled people in general, blindness was particularly stigmatized, and lack of access to reading and writing was a significant barrier to social participation. The idea of tactile reading was not entirely new, but existing methods based on sighted systems were difficult to learn and use. As the first writing system designed for blind people’s needs, Braille was a groundbreaking new accessibility tool. It not only provided practical benefits, but also helped change the cultural status of blindness. This essay begins by discussing the situation of blind people in nineteenth-century Europe. It then describes the invention of Braille and the gradual process of its acceptance within blind education. Subsequently, it explores the wide-ranging effects of this invention on blind people’s social and cultural lives.

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Table of contents

Step 1: hook your reader, step 2: give background information, step 3: present your thesis statement, step 4: map your essay’s structure, step 5: check and revise, more examples of essay introductions, other interesting articles, frequently asked questions about the essay introduction.

Your first sentence sets the tone for the whole essay, so spend some time on writing an effective hook.

Avoid long, dense sentences—start with something clear, concise and catchy that will spark your reader’s curiosity.

The hook should lead the reader into your essay, giving a sense of the topic you’re writing about and why it’s interesting. Avoid overly broad claims or plain statements of fact.

Examples: Writing a good hook

Take a look at these examples of weak hooks and learn how to improve them.

• Braille was an extremely important invention.
• The invention of Braille was a major turning point in the history of disability.

The first sentence is a dry fact; the second sentence is more interesting, making a bold claim about exactly  why the topic is important.

• The internet is defined as “a global computer network providing a variety of information and communication facilities.”
• The spread of the internet has had a world-changing effect, not least on the world of education.

Avoid using a dictionary definition as your hook, especially if it’s an obvious term that everyone knows. The improved example here is still broad, but it gives us a much clearer sense of what the essay will be about.

• Mary Shelley’s  Frankenstein is a famous book from the nineteenth century.
• Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein is often read as a crude cautionary tale about the dangers of scientific advancement.

Instead of just stating a fact that the reader already knows, the improved hook here tells us about the mainstream interpretation of the book, implying that this essay will offer a different interpretation.

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Next, give your reader the context they need to understand your topic and argument. Depending on the subject of your essay, this might include:

• Historical, geographical, or social context
• An outline of the debate you’re addressing
• A summary of relevant theories or research about the topic
• Definitions of key terms

The information here should be broad but clearly focused and relevant to your argument. Don’t give too much detail—you can mention points that you will return to later, but save your evidence and interpretation for the main body of the essay.

How much space you need for background depends on your topic and the scope of your essay. In our Braille example, we take a few sentences to introduce the topic and sketch the social context that the essay will address:

Now it’s time to narrow your focus and show exactly what you want to say about the topic. This is your thesis statement —a sentence or two that sums up your overall argument.

This is the most important part of your introduction. A  good thesis isn’t just a statement of fact, but a claim that requires evidence and explanation.

The goal is to clearly convey your own position in a debate or your central point about a topic.

Particularly in longer essays, it’s helpful to end the introduction by signposting what will be covered in each part. Keep it concise and give your reader a clear sense of the direction your argument will take.

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As you research and write, your argument might change focus or direction as you learn more.

For this reason, it’s often a good idea to wait until later in the writing process before you write the introduction paragraph—it can even be the very last thing you write.

When you’ve finished writing the essay body and conclusion , you should return to the introduction and check that it matches the content of the essay.

It’s especially important to make sure your thesis statement accurately represents what you do in the essay. If your argument has gone in a different direction than planned, tweak your thesis statement to match what you actually say.

To polish your writing, you can use something like a paraphrasing tool .

You can use the checklist below to make sure your introduction does everything it’s supposed to.

Checklist: Essay introduction

My first sentence is engaging and relevant.

I have introduced the topic with necessary background information.

I have defined any important terms.

My thesis statement clearly presents my main point or argument.

Everything in the introduction is relevant to the main body of the essay.

You have a strong introduction - now make sure the rest of your essay is just as good.

• Argumentative
• Literary analysis

This introduction to an argumentative essay sets up the debate about the internet and education, and then clearly states the position the essay will argue for.

The spread of the internet has had a world-changing effect, not least on the world of education. The use of the internet in academic contexts is on the rise, and its role in learning is hotly debated. For many teachers who did not grow up with this technology, its effects seem alarming and potentially harmful. This concern, while understandable, is misguided. The negatives of internet use are outweighed by its critical benefits for students and educators—as a uniquely comprehensive and accessible information source; a means of exposure to and engagement with different perspectives; and a highly flexible learning environment.

This introduction to a short expository essay leads into the topic (the invention of the printing press) and states the main point the essay will explain (the effect of this invention on European society).

In many ways, the invention of the printing press marked the end of the Middle Ages. The medieval period in Europe is often remembered as a time of intellectual and political stagnation. Prior to the Renaissance, the average person had very limited access to books and was unlikely to be literate. The invention of the printing press in the 15th century allowed for much less restricted circulation of information in Europe, paving the way for the Reformation.

This introduction to a literary analysis essay , about Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein , starts by describing a simplistic popular view of the story, and then states how the author will give a more complex analysis of the text’s literary devices.

Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein is often read as a crude cautionary tale. Arguably the first science fiction novel, its plot can be read as a warning about the dangers of scientific advancement unrestrained by ethical considerations. In this reading, and in popular culture representations of the character as a “mad scientist”, Victor Frankenstein represents the callous, arrogant ambition of modern science. However, far from providing a stable image of the character, Shelley uses shifting narrative perspectives to gradually transform our impression of Frankenstein, portraying him in an increasingly negative light as the novel goes on. While he initially appears to be a naive but sympathetic idealist, after the creature’s narrative Frankenstein begins to resemble—even in his own telling—the thoughtlessly cruel figure the creature represents him as.

If you want to know more about AI tools , college essays , or fallacies make sure to check out some of our other articles with explanations and examples or go directly to our tools!

• Ad hominem fallacy
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Your essay introduction should include three main things, in this order:

• An opening hook to catch the reader’s attention.
• Relevant background information that the reader needs to know.
• A thesis statement that presents your main point or argument.

The length of each part depends on the length and complexity of your essay .

The “hook” is the first sentence of your essay introduction . It should lead the reader into your essay, giving a sense of why it’s interesting.

To write a good hook, avoid overly broad statements or long, dense sentences. Try to start with something clear, concise and catchy that will spark your reader’s curiosity.

A thesis statement is a sentence that sums up the central point of your paper or essay . Everything else you write should relate to this key idea.

The thesis statement is essential in any academic essay or research paper for two main reasons:

• It gives your writing direction and focus.
• It gives the reader a concise summary of your main point.

Without a clear thesis statement, an essay can end up rambling and unfocused, leaving your reader unsure of exactly what you want to say.

The structure of an essay is divided into an introduction that presents your topic and thesis statement , a body containing your in-depth analysis and arguments, and a conclusion wrapping up your ideas.

The structure of the body is flexible, but you should always spend some time thinking about how you can organize your essay to best serve your ideas.

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How to Write an Essay Introduction

Last Updated: January 15, 2024 Fact Checked

This article was co-authored by Jake Adams and by wikiHow staff writer, Jennifer Mueller, JD . Jake Adams is an academic tutor and the owner of Simplifi EDU, a Santa Monica, California based online tutoring business offering learning resources and online tutors for academic subjects K-College, SAT & ACT prep, and college admissions applications. With over 14 years of professional tutoring experience, Jake is dedicated to providing his clients the very best online tutoring experience and access to a network of excellent undergraduate and graduate-level tutors from top colleges all over the nation. Jake holds a BS in International Business and Marketing from Pepperdine University. There are 12 references cited in this article, which can be found at the bottom of the page. This article has been fact-checked, ensuring the accuracy of any cited facts and confirming the authority of its sources. This article has been viewed 4,238,712 times.

The introduction of your essay serves two important purposes. First, it gets your reader interested in the topic and encourages them to read what you have to say about it. Second, it gives your reader a roadmap of what you're going to say and the overarching point you're going to make – your thesis statement. A powerful introduction grabs your reader's attention and keeps them reading.

Sample Essay Hooks & Introductions

Hooking Your Reader

• If you're writing a paper for a class, don't automatically assume your instructor is your audience. If you write directly to your instructor, you'll end up glossing over some information that is necessary to show that you properly understand the subject of your essay.
• It can be helpful to reverse-engineer your audience based on the subject matter of your essay. For example, if you're writing an essay about a women's health issue for a women's studies class, you might identify your audience as young women within the age range most affected by the issue.

• For this hook to be effective, your fact needs to be sufficiently surprising. If you're not sure, test it on a few friends. If they react by expressing shock or surprise, you know you've got something good.
• Use a fact or statistic that sets up your essay, not something you'll be using as evidence to prove your thesis statement. Facts or statistics that demonstrate why your topic is important (or should be important) to your audience typically make good hooks.

• For example, if you were writing an essay proposing a change to drunk driving laws, you might open with a story of how the life of a victim was changed forever after they were hit by a drunk driver.

• For example, if you're writing an essay about a public figure, you might include an anecdote about an odd personal habit that cleverly relates back to your thesis statement.
• Particularly with less formal papers or personal essays, humorous anecdotes can be particularly effective hooks.

• For example: "What would you do if you could play God for a day? That's exactly what the leaders of the tiny island nation of Guam tried to answer."
• If your essay prompt was a question, don't just repeat it in your paper. Make sure to come up with your own intriguing question.

• Broad, sweeping generalizations may ring false with some readers and alienate them from the start. For example, "everyone wants someone to love" would alienate someone who identified as aromantic or asexual.

Creating Your Context

• Use an appropriate transitional word or phrase, such as "however" or "similarly," to move from your specific anecdote back out to a broader scope.
• For example, if you related a story about one individual, but your essay isn't about them, you can relate the hook back to the larger topic with a sentence like "Tommy wasn't alone, however. There were more than 200,000 dockworkers affected by that union strike."

• For example, if your thesis relates to how blackface was used as a means of enforcing racial segregation, your introduction would describe what blackface performances were, and where and when they occurred.
• If you are writing an argumentative paper, make sure to explain both sides of the argument in a neutral or objective manner.

• Definitions would be particularly important if your essay is discussing a scientific topic, where some scientific terminology might not be understood by the average layperson.
• Definitions also come in handy in legal or political essays, where a term may have different meanings depending on the context in which they are used.

• If you're using 2 or 3 sentences to describe the context for your thesis, try to make each sentence a bit more specific than the one before it. Draw your reader in gradually.
• For example, if you're writing an essay about drunk driving fatalities, you might start with an anecdote about a particular victim. Then you could provide national statistics, then narrow it down further to statistics for a particular gender or age group.

Presenting Your Thesis

• For example, a thesis for an essay on blackface performance might be "Because of its humiliating and demoralizing effect on African American slaves, blackface was used less as a comedy routine and more as a way of enforcing racial segregation."
• Be assertive and confident in your writing. Avoid including fluff such as "In this essay, I will attempt to show...." Instead, dive right in and make your claim, bold and proud.
• Your outline should be specific, unique, and provable. Through your essay, you'll make points that will show that your thesis statement is true – or at least persuade your readers that it's most likely true.

• If you've created an outline for your essay, this sentence is essentially the main subjects of each paragraph of the body of your essay.
• For example, if you're writing an essay about the unification of Italy, you might list 3 obstacles to unification. In the body of your essay, you would discuss details about how each of those obstacles was addressed or overcome.
• Instead of just listing all of your supporting points, sum them up by stating "how" or "why" your thesis is true. For example, instead of saying, "Phones should be banned from classrooms because they distract students, promote cheating, and make too much noise," you might say "Phones should be banned from classrooms because they act as an obstacle to learning."

• To figure out if you need a transition sentence, read the introduction and the first paragraph out loud. If you find yourself pausing or stumbling between the paragraphs, work in a transition to make the move smoother.
• You can also have friends or family members read your easy. If they feel it's choppy or jumps from the introduction into the essay, see what you can do to smooth it out.

Bringing It All Together

• If you're writing your essay for a class assignment, ask your instructor for examples of well-written essays that you can look at. Take note of conventions that are commonly used by writers in that discipline.
• Make a brief outline of the essay based on the information presented in the introduction. Then look at that outline as you read the essay to see how the essay follows it to prove the writer's thesis statement.

• For shorter essays under 1,000 words, keep your introduction to 1 paragraph, between 100 and 200 words.
• Always follow your instructor's guidelines for length. These rules can vary at times based on genre or form of writing.

• As you write your essay, you may want to jot down things you want to include in your introduction. For example, you may realize that you're using a particular term that you need to define in your introduction.

• Delete any filler or unnecessary language. Given the shortness of the introduction, every sentence should be essential to your reader's understanding of your essay.

• The first sentence or two should be your hook, designed to grab your reader's attention and get them interested in reading your essay.
• The next couple of sentences create a bridge between your hook and the overall topic of the rest of your essay.
• End your introduction with your thesis statement and a list of the points you will make in your essay to support or prove your thesis statement.

Expert Q&A

• If you are answering or responding to an assigned question, make sure you've interpreted the question correctly. The quality of your writing is irrelevant if your essay doesn't answer the question. Thanks Helpful 7 Not Helpful 1
• Have friends or family members read your essay and provide you with feedback. If you're writing for a class, you might want to exchange essays with another classmate and give each other feedback on your work. Thanks Helpful 3 Not Helpful 1

Tips from our Readers

• Reread your intro after writing each section to make sure both the intro and section are relevant to each other and to the paper.
• A sharp, descriptive title is sometimes just as important as an intro!

You Might Also Like

• ↑ https://writingcenter.unc.edu/tips-and-tools/audience/
• ↑ http://advice.writing.utoronto.ca/planning/intros-and-conclusions/
• ↑ https://www.grammarly.com/blog/how-to-write-an-introduction/
• ↑ https://www.esu.edu/writing-studio/guides/hook.cfm
• ↑ https://writingcenter.unc.edu/tips-and-tools/introductions/
• ↑ https://writingcenter.unc.edu/tips-and-tools/cliches/
• ↑ Jake Adams. Academic Tutor & Test Prep Specialist. Expert Interview. 20 May 2020.
• ↑ https://library.sacredheart.edu/c.php?g=29803&p=185917
• ↑ https://writingcenter.uagc.edu/introductions-conclusions
• ↑ https://lsa.umich.edu/sweetland/undergraduates/writing-guides/how-do-i-write-an-intro--conclusion----body-paragraph.html
• ↑ https://writingcenter.unc.edu/tips-and-tools/transitions/
• ↑ https://advice.writing.utoronto.ca/planning/intros-and-conclusions/

About This Article

Start your introduction with a relevant story, fact, or quote that will engage readers. Then, add 2-3 sentences of background information to give your essay context, and include important dates, locations, or historical moments where applicable. Finally, include your thesis statement, which is a specific, arguable, and provable statement that answers a question about your essay topic. For example, your thesis might read: "In the modern age, online dating apps like Tinder provide a wider variety of romantic options than young people have ever had before." For more tips and examples on how to craft your thesis and put your introduction together, read on! Did this summary help you? Yes No

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Writing an article

I can write an opinion article paying focused attention to vocabulary and sentence structures.

Lesson details

Key learning points.

• Focused writing asks you to think carefully about vocabulary choices and sentence structure.
• An effective way to open an article is to begin with a striking image.
• Using an extended metaphor will help to unify your writing.
• Informal discourse markers are appropriate for an opinion article.
• A call to action is a powerful way to end an article.

Common misconception

Students often feel that all their writing in English needs to be formal.

Explain that articles are designed for a wide audience not an academic one.

Intimidating - making you feel frightened or nervous

Informal - not official; relaxed and friendly

Strewn - spread out in an untidy way

Debris - the remains of anything broken down or destroyed

Exhilarating - making you feel very excited and happy

Content guidance

• Depiction or discussion of sensitive content

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Adult supervision recommended

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Starter quiz

6 questions.

intimidating -  

frightening

informal -  

exhilarating -  

How to write an introduction for a history essay

Every essay needs to begin with an introductory paragraph. It needs to be the first paragraph the marker reads.

While your introduction paragraph might be the first of the paragraphs you write, this is not the only way to do it.

You can choose to write your introduction after you have written the rest of your essay.

This way, you will know what you have argued, and this might make writing the introduction easier.

Either approach is fine. If you do write your introduction first, ensure that you go back and refine it once you have completed your essay. 

What is an ‘introduction paragraph’?

An introductory paragraph is a single paragraph at the start of your essay that prepares your reader for the argument you are going to make in your body paragraphs .

It should provide all of the necessary historical information about your topic and clearly state your argument so that by the end of the paragraph, the marker knows how you are going to structure the rest of your essay.

In general, you should never use quotes from sources in your introduction.

Introduction paragraph structure

While your introduction paragraph does not have to be as long as your body paragraphs , it does have a specific purpose, which you must fulfil.

A well-written introduction paragraph has the following four-part structure (summarised by the acronym BHES).

B – Background sentences

H – Hypothesis

E – Elaboration sentences

S - Signpost sentence

Each of these elements are explained in further detail, with examples, below:

1. Background sentences

The first two or three sentences of your introduction should provide a general introduction to the historical topic which your essay is about.

This is done so that when you state your hypothesis , your reader understands the specific point you are arguing about.

Background sentences explain the important historical period, dates, people, places, events and concepts that will be mentioned later in your essay.

This information should be drawn from your background research . 

Example background sentences:

Middle Ages (Year 8 Level)

Castles were an important component of Medieval Britain from the time of the Norman conquest in 1066 until they were phased out in the 15 th and 16 th centuries. Initially introduced as wooden motte and bailey structures on geographical strongpoints, they were rapidly replaced by stone fortresses which incorporated sophisticated defensive designs to improve the defenders’ chances of surviving prolonged sieges.

WWI (Year 9 Level)

The First World War began in 1914 following the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand. The subsequent declarations of war from most of Europe drew other countries into the conflict, including Australia. The Australian Imperial Force joined the war as part of Britain’s armed forces and were dispatched to locations in the Middle East and Western Europe.

Civil Rights (Year 10 Level)

The 1967 Referendum sought to amend the Australian Constitution in order to change the legal standing of the indigenous people in Australia. The fact that 90% of Australians voted in favour of the proposed amendments has been attributed to a series of significant events and people who were dedicated to the referendum’s success.

Ancient Rome (Year 11/12 Level)  

In the late second century BC, the Roman novus homo Gaius Marius became one of the most influential men in the Roman Republic. Marius gained this authority through his victory in the Jugurthine War, with his defeat of Jugurtha in 106 BC, and his triumph over the invading Germanic tribes in 101 BC, when he crushed the Teutones at the Battle of Aquae Sextiae (102 BC) and the Cimbri at the Battle of Vercellae (101 BC). Marius also gained great fame through his election to the consulship seven times.

2. Hypothesis

Once you have provided historical context for your essay in your background sentences, you need to state your hypothesis .

A hypothesis is a single sentence that clearly states the argument that your essay will be proving in your body paragraphs .

A good hypothesis contains both the argument and the reasons in support of your argument. 

Example hypotheses:

Medieval castles were designed with features that nullified the superior numbers of besieging armies but were ultimately made obsolete by the development of gunpowder artillery.

Australian soldiers’ opinion of the First World War changed from naïve enthusiasm to pessimistic realism as a result of the harsh realities of modern industrial warfare.

The success of the 1967 Referendum was a direct result of the efforts of First Nations leaders such as Charles Perkins, Faith Bandler and the Federal Council for the Advancement of Aborigines and Torres Strait Islanders.

Gaius Marius was the most one of the most significant personalities in the 1 st century BC due to his effect on the political, military and social structures of the Roman state.

3. Elaboration sentences

Once you have stated your argument in your hypothesis , you need to provide particular information about how you’re going to prove your argument.

Your elaboration sentences should be one or two sentences that provide specific details about how you’re going to cover the argument in your three body paragraphs.

You might also briefly summarise two or three of your main points.

Finally, explain any important key words, phrases or concepts that you’ve used in your hypothesis, you’ll need to do this in your elaboration sentences.

Example elaboration sentences:

By the height of the Middle Ages, feudal lords were investing significant sums of money by incorporating concentric walls and guard towers to maximise their defensive potential. These developments were so successful that many medieval armies avoided sieges in the late period.

Following Britain's official declaration of war on Germany, young Australian men voluntarily enlisted into the army, which was further encouraged by government propaganda about the moral justifications for the conflict. However, following the initial engagements on the Gallipoli peninsula, enthusiasm declined.

The political activity of key indigenous figures and the formation of activism organisations focused on indigenous resulted in a wider spread of messages to the general Australian public. The generation of powerful images and speeches has been frequently cited by modern historians as crucial to the referendum results.

While Marius is best known for his military reforms, it is the subsequent impacts of this reform on the way other Romans approached the attainment of magistracies and how public expectations of military leaders changed that had the longest impacts on the late republican period.

4. Signpost sentence

The final sentence of your introduction should prepare the reader for the topic of your first body paragraph.

The main purpose of this sentence is to provide cohesion between your introductory paragraph and you first body paragraph .

Therefore, a signpost sentence indicates where you will begin proving the argument that you set out in your hypothesis and usually states the importance of the first point that you’re about to make. 

Example signpost sentences:

The early development of castles is best understood when examining their military purpose.

The naïve attitudes of those who volunteered in 1914 can be clearly seen in the personal letters and diaries that they themselves wrote.

The significance of these people is evident when examining the lack of political representation the indigenous people experience in the early half of the 20 th century.

The origin of Marius’ later achievements was his military reform in 107 BC, which occurred when he was first elected as consul.

Putting it all together

Once you have written all four parts of the BHES structure, you should have a completed introduction paragraph.

In the examples above, we have shown each part separately. Below you will see the completed paragraphs so that you can appreciate what an introduction should look like.

Example introduction paragraphs: 

Castles were an important component of Medieval Britain from the time of the Norman conquest in 1066 until they were phased out in the 15th and 16th centuries. Initially introduced as wooden motte and bailey structures on geographical strongpoints, they were rapidly replaced by stone fortresses which incorporated sophisticated defensive designs to improve the defenders’ chances of surviving prolonged sieges. Medieval castles were designed with features that nullified the superior numbers of besieging armies, but were ultimately made obsolete by the development of gunpowder artillery. By the height of the Middle Ages, feudal lords were investing significant sums of money by incorporating concentric walls and guard towers to maximise their defensive potential. These developments were so successful that many medieval armies avoided sieges in the late period. The early development of castles is best understood when examining their military purpose.

The First World War began in 1914 following the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand. The subsequent declarations of war from most of Europe drew other countries into the conflict, including Australia. The Australian Imperial Force joined the war as part of Britain’s armed forces and were dispatched to locations in the Middle East and Western Europe. Australian soldiers’ opinion of the First World War changed from naïve enthusiasm to pessimistic realism as a result of the harsh realities of modern industrial warfare. Following Britain's official declaration of war on Germany, young Australian men voluntarily enlisted into the army, which was further encouraged by government propaganda about the moral justifications for the conflict. However, following the initial engagements on the Gallipoli peninsula, enthusiasm declined. The naïve attitudes of those who volunteered in 1914 can be clearly seen in the personal letters and diaries that they themselves wrote.

The 1967 Referendum sought to amend the Australian Constitution in order to change the legal standing of the indigenous people in Australia. The fact that 90% of Australians voted in favour of the proposed amendments has been attributed to a series of significant events and people who were dedicated to the referendum’s success. The success of the 1967 Referendum was a direct result of the efforts of First Nations leaders such as Charles Perkins, Faith Bandler and the Federal Council for the Advancement of Aborigines and Torres Strait Islanders. The political activity of key indigenous figures and the formation of activism organisations focused on indigenous resulted in a wider spread of messages to the general Australian public. The generation of powerful images and speeches has been frequently cited by modern historians as crucial to the referendum results. The significance of these people is evident when examining the lack of political representation the indigenous people experience in the early half of the 20th century.

In the late second century BC, the Roman novus homo Gaius Marius became one of the most influential men in the Roman Republic. Marius gained this authority through his victory in the Jugurthine War, with his defeat of Jugurtha in 106 BC, and his triumph over the invading Germanic tribes in 101 BC, when he crushed the Teutones at the Battle of Aquae Sextiae (102 BC) and the Cimbri at the Battle of Vercellae (101 BC). Marius also gained great fame through his election to the consulship seven times. Gaius Marius was the most one of the most significant personalities in the 1st century BC due to his effect on the political, military and social structures of the Roman state. While Marius is best known for his military reforms, it is the subsequent impacts of this reform on the way other Romans approached the attainment of magistracies and how public expectations of military leaders changed that had the longest impacts on the late republican period. The origin of Marius’ later achievements was his military reform in 107 BC, which occurred when he was first elected as consul.

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English KS3 Essay Writing

Subject: English

Age range: 11-14

Resource type: Lesson (complete)

Last updated

27 May 2021

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KS3 English lesson on essay writing, that focuses on key essay features like a clear introduction and conclusion, creating a coherent structure, providing a balanced tone and offering different perspectives.The lesson includes a modelled example and extensive teacher and student notes so students can see where and how they can improve their own essay writing in order to make their nonfiction writing more coherent and fluid.

Includes differentiated activities, model examples, notes for students and teachers and more. Really useful for English KS3 students but also adaptable for AQA English Language Paper 2 Question 5. Fully differentiated throughout.

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English KS3 Non-Fiction Writing

A non-fiction writing pack for English KS3 students and adaptable for KS4. This complete scheme includes differentiated activities, modelled examples, scaffolds, student-friendly mark schemes, a revision escape room, six weeks of homework and so much more. Useful for AQA English Language Paper 2 Question 5 exam preparation. Includes: * Non-fiction writing introduction (text types, purpose, audience) * Creating and writing reviews (purposes, audiences, structure) * Improving vocabulary (prefixes, suffixes) * Interview article writing (Organisation and structure) * * Writing to argue lesson (George Floyd and rioting - perspectives) * Writing to advise lesson with model example * Paragraphing lesson on how to use paragraphs effectively * Writing to explain lesson on statues and protests * Speech writing lesson on the NHS and writing to persuade * Sentence openers lesson for improving non-fiction writing * Essay writing lesson on censorship * Tone and language lesson to impact on audiences * Letter writing lesson - writing to persuade * Leaflet writing on a contemporary topic * Punctuation workshop with differianted worksheets. Commas, semicolons, dashes, colons and more. * Writing to argue assessment planning lesson * Non-fiction escape room * Assessment review lesson including student-friendly mark scheme and peer assessment review sheets * Six weeks of English homework - all differentiated! * Six week scheme of work document

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Essay writing teaching pack

Develop your KS3 and KS4 students’ formal writing skills with our ‘toolkit’ of creative classroom activities, genuine student exemplar essays and exclusive teaching resources. This pack features activities to help students write well-planned, well-structured and sophisticated essays in readiness for GCSE English Literature and for the longer essay-style questions in GCSE English Language. Essential for teaching all aspects of essay writing for your class novel, play text or reading unit.

What's included?

• sections include: getting students started, planning and structuring essays, introductions and conclusions, using quotations, inference and deduction, formal essay vocabulary and drafting and redrafting
• real student essays from year 9 students in a range of comprehensive schools.

What's inside?

Introduction (pages 3-5)

Getting students started (pages 6-15)

• Resource - Imperative verbs, recipes and … mmm, cake
• Resource - Cut open her heart and sprinkle it with love …
• Resource - What do the Bloom’s words mean?
• Resource - Second guessing essay questions
• Resource - Setting the questions
• Resource - Making light of tricky imperatives
• Resource - Bloom’s examples’
• Resource - Knowledge – Level 1
• Resource - Comprehension – Level 2
• Resource - Application – Level 3
• Resource - Analysis – Level 4
• Resource - Synthesis – Level 5
• Resource - Evaluation – Level 6

Planning and structuring essays (pages 16-25)

• Resource - Mind-mapping
• Resource - Reading the question
• Resource - ‘What makes a good essay?’
• Resource - What should I include in my essay?
• Resource - Does the order matter?
• Resource - Using connectives
• Resource - What makes a good essay?
• Resource - Dictionary definitions
• Resource - Writer’s word bank

Introductions and conclusions (pages 26-34)

• Resource - Eye spy introductions
• Resource - Summarise that!
• Resource - Psst …
• Resource - Summarising with precise vocabulary
• Resource - Good conclusions
• Resource - How to conclude
• Resource - Peer assessment
• Resource - Students’ introductions
• Resource - Read this extract taken from Out of Africa by Isak Dinesen
• Resource - Complete the table below for your chosen text

Using quotations (pages 35-48)

• Resource - What is a quotation?
• Resource - Why use a quotation?
• Resource - Using evidence
• Resource - Introducing a quotation
• Resource - Where should I put the quotation?
• Resource - Paragraph sandwiches
• Resource - Which quotation?
• Resource - Embedding quotations

Inference and deduction (pages 49-60)

• Resource - Reading between the lines
• Resource - Practising inference
• Resource - Fully understanding the text
• Resource - Finding the evidence
• Resource - Identifying the best words to comment on
• Resource - Considering opinions about a text
• Resource - Forming independent opinions about a text
• Resource - How would this make the reader/audience feel?
• Resource - PEE mobiles
• Resource - Peer assessing
• Resource - Look at the rectangles below and try to complete each one in turn
• Resource - Read through the poem once. What is it about? Who are the characters featured?
• Resource - Opinion statements
• Resource - PEE mobile activity

Formal essay vocabulary (pages 61-67)

• Resource - Formal essay vocabulary
• Resource - Words for analysis SNAP!
• Resource - Linking your ideas together
• Resource - Linking words and phrases

Drafting and redrafting (pages 68-75)

• Resource - Writing a conclusion
• Resource - Improving vocabulary and structure
• Resource - Self-assessing
• Resource - Peer-assessing
• Resource - Developing vocabulary and choices of sentence structure
• Resource - Rubric
• Resource - Student examples

This is an example student activity on planning and structuring essays:

The paragraphs below are all from a sample essay written by Student C about the poem ‘Anthem for Doomed Youth’ by Wilfred Owen. Work out what order the essay should be in, by cutting up the parts and arranging the paragraphs in the correct order.

Explain why you chose to put the essay in this order, saying which clues you used.  1. What structural techniques can you use to make your essay writing clearly organised for your reader? 2. What problems would there be if the essay was in a different order?

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How To Write An Essay Introduction Ks3

• Author Sandra W.

Most students have problems writing their essays since they do not what or what not to include in their essay introductions. iWriteEssays.com will help you solve this by telling you how you should write an essay introduction. Your introduction should be captivating and enjoyable so that the reader can have the zeal to go on reading the whole essay. Once you write a boring introduction, you are prone to get low marks and fail since your professor may end up not reading your whole essay if he gets bored by the introduction. To save you from this, we will tell you how you need to write an essay introduction so that you can always have the best introductions for your essays.

• Begin with an attention grabber

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Your attention grabber may include the following:

• Startling information - this information must be true and verifiable but does not need to be very new to your readers. If you use a piece of startling information, follow it with a sentence or two of elaboration.
• Anecdote – An anecdote is ussually a short piece of writing that make a point that is relevant to your topic. This can be an effective opener to your essay if you use it carefully.
• Dialogue – a nice dialogue should not identify the speakers but the reader must understand the point you are trying to convey. Use only two or three exchanges between speakers to make your point.
• Summary information – a few sentences explaining your topic in general terms can lead the reader gently to your thesis. Each sentence should come gradually more specific, until you reach your thesis.
• If the attention grabber was only a sentence or two, add one or two more sentences that will lead the reader from your opening to your thesis statement.
• Finish the paragraph with your thesis statement.

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